For Korea, Revenge Is Still on Ice

Tuesday, Jun. 11, 2002 By HANNAH BEECH

South Korea's Ahn Jung Hwan celebrates his goal by doing a 'speed-skater' dance

JACQUES DEMARTHON/AFP

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The Americans thought they might lose. The Koreans thought they might win. And, in the end, the two Group D contenders drew 1-1 in Monday's remarkably unsatisfactory match in Daegu, South Korea, leaving each country's chances for second-round advancement hanging for another four days. Despite only scoring an equalizer late in the second half, the Koreans dominated the game. Their passes were crisper, their energy more bountiful. Indeed, the Americans were lucky that one of their rare scoring opportunities was so masterfully seized by Clint Mathis, who slid the ball into the net in the 23rd minute.

Korea's disappointment in not having more to show for itself was expressed in post-game comments by coach Guus Hiddink. Usually solicitous, the Dutch coach snapped at reporters, telling them: "Open your ears...I don't have time for repetitive questions." American coach Bruce Arena, on the other hand, faced the press with his usual smirk intact: "Six months ago, it would have been hard to imagine that we'd be doing so well at this point in time."

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The difference in the coaches' demeanor is in part determined by whom each team plays next. Both nations need at least a tie to clinch a berth in the second round. Luckily for the U.S., they face laggards Poland, who were eliminated from second-round competition on Monday evening, after a 4-0 drubbing courtesy of Portugal. Korea, however, plays Portugal next, and the Europeans' victory over Poland did much to erase memories of their humiliating opening match loss to the U.S.

But the slumped shoulders of the Korean team, who slipped past reporters as the Americans chatted away, pointed at more than just jitters about the upcoming match. Daegu's stadium was filled with 60,800 Koreans cheering, urging, pleading their team to victory--and the team felt they had let their countrymen down. After all, the sea of red T-shirted Koreans were not only there to provide support for their newly ascendant team. No, they were there for revenge.

Five months ago, in an incident barely noticed in the U.S., Kim Dong Sung, a Korean short-track speed-skater was disqualified at the Salt Lake Olympics. It was American Apolo Anton Ohno who took the gold instead of the Korean. The incident inflamed millions of Koreans, who claimed that Ohno's play-acting unfairly got the Korean DQed; many Koreans still believe the race was fixed since the Americans were skating on home turf. Even weeks after the Olympics were over, the final moments of the contentious race were replayed over and over on Korean TV; Ohno was voted the most hated foreigner by Koreans.

So it was hardly surprising that when Korean substitute Ahn Jung Hwan headed the ball into the net in the 77th minute, his post-goal showboating consisted of joining a posse of Korean footballers in mimicking the sweeping arm motions of a speed skater. American coach Bruce Arena, however, wasn't impressed: "[The skating controversy] is not something I know much about, but you'd think they'd get over it." Just wait until Friday, Bruce. If the U.S. makes it to the next round and Korea doesn't, you can be sure that the American coach will hear a lot more about some guy named Apolo Ohno then he ever wanted to know.